After a week, I was called to come in to get the PSA results. It was now three and a half months past my initial physical where my PSA test was 6.4, and now it was 9.7. Well, hasta la vista being able to be given a Long Term Care insurance policy wit a letter negating an issue from my doctor! My G.P. said that I needed to schedule an appointment with a Urologist. When I said that I had never been to one, he recommended one, locally that was in my health insurance "network". I called and the earliest I could be seen, was two weeks later.
I walked into the small 10 by 15 foot waiting room of this doctor that had about six elderly patients for my 4 pm appointment at 3:45 in order to have time for the sign in paperwork. Two patients were checking in ahead of me..."Your co-payment will be $20". "Your co-payment will be $40". "Your (mine) co-payment will be $183"! The previous two were on Medicare! I sat down to start seven pages of medical history forms and releases...at least the print was large because I had forgotten my reading glasses! The gentleman across from me asked what my guess for time to complete the forms would be? "You're a young "whipper-snapper"...what are you doing in a urologists office at your age? I'm 94 years old and I'm just coming!"
At 5:30 my name was called (as there was no one else in the waiting room by then!). "And how are you today? What is the purpose of your visit? Come to this back room. Roll up your sleeve...I need to take your blood pressure and then your temperature!" Then the nurse's aide left. I noticed two framed objects in the room...one was a painting by an artist friend of mine an offered for sale...the second was a diploma from the College of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, where I had architecturally designed the Forensic Institute for the State of New Jersey. My patience was growing thin, as continued to wait...so I opened the door to the hall and started pacing back and forth...
At 6:30 the door opened and a young man entered. "How are you today? You seem anxious! I'm sorry that you had to wait so long. Yes, I received my medical education from The College of Medicine and Dentistry" in New Jersey. Please tell me why you're here today? Have you ever been to a urologist?" I informed, "My grandfather was chief of surgery at St. Francis Hospital, where I was born. He specialized in prostate surgery and he passed away from it. His twin sons, in practice with him at St. Francis, also both were diagnosed and treated for prostate cancer". The doctor related that he had done his residency there....another case of "once-removed" coincidences!
"Please remove your slacks and lean over the exam table...I'll need to do a rectal exam...I cannot detect any abnormality...but with your quickly increased, and high PSA, and family history, I am going to schedule you for a prostate biopsy. It is done by me in the office, under local anesthesia, and should only take about 15 minutes. A good result could be that it will be negative, and I may be able to write a letter to have your Long Term Care policy reinstated."
I was scheduled for the biopsy in one week. "Your co payment will be $785. You can use a credit card (yeah, cash back or miles!)". As I left the empty office at 7 pm I felt confident that my $968 + investment would result in reinstatement of my insurance at my $6,000 discounted rate!
No comments:
Post a Comment